Our American Family - Person Sheet
Our American Family - Person Sheet
NameWilliam CLAYTON , 4282
Birth Date9 Dec 1632
Birth PlaceEngland
MemoU.S., Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current
Death Date1 Aug 1689 Age: 56
Death PlaceChester, Delaware County, Pennsylvania
MemoWeb: Netherlands, GenealogieOnline Trees Index, 1000-2015
OccupationNew Jersey’s Governor’s Council, Justice Of The Courts
FatherThomas CLAYTON , 8564 (1598-1666)
MotherMary Thompson , 8565 (1602-1691)
Spouses
Birth Date8 Dec 1638
Birth PlaceLondon, London, England
Death Date1728 Age: 89
Death PlaceChester, Delaware County, Pennsylvania
MemoWeb: Netherlands, GenealogieOnline Trees Index, 1000-2015
FatherRobert MILLER , 8566 (?-)
MotherMargaret BROITHWAITE , 8567 (?-)
Family ID7277
Marr Date7 Nov 1653
Marr PlaceSt. Pancras, Chichester, Sussex, England
Marr MemoMillennium File
ChildrenHonour , 2141 (1662-1737)
 Mary (1665-1734)
Notes for William CLAYTON
ENGLISH IMMIGRANT ANCESTOR on the vessel “Kent.”

—————————————

Web: Netherlands, GenealogieOnline Trees Index, 1000-2015.

——————————————

William Clayton (colonist)

William Clayton (December 9, 1632 – 1689) was a settler of the Pennsylvania colony, one of the first councilors of Pennsylvania and a judge of the city of Philadelphia.
Early life
Clayton was baptized on December 9, 1632, in Boxgrove, England, the son of William Clayton and Joan Smith.
His mother died before he was a teenager, and in 1653 he married Prudence Lanckford, a daughter of William Lanckford, in St Pancras, London. Clayton became a carpenter by trade and a follower of the Quaker religion.[1]
Pennsylvania
Clayton was a founder of the Pennsylvania colony, serving as an original commissioner for William Penn, as well as one of Philadelphia's first judges. He was appointed to the provincial Council in 3 Aug 1681, and later was elected to the council in 1683, serving until 30 Mar 1686. On 19 Aug 1684, he was commissioned as a JP in Philadelphia County.[2]
Penn Company Commissioner
In 1677, Clayton set sail for America, arriving in New York after being selected by Penn to serve as a commissioner. He oversaw the clearance of Indian land titles acquired by Penn in the West Jersey colony near present day Burlington, New Jersey. In 1678, he purchased 1000 acres in Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania.[3] In 1681, his family removed to Chichester, Pennsylvania, where Clayton had secured a 500-acre land patent.[4]
Chester and Philadelphia judge
In 1681, he presided over the first Upland Court in Chester, Pennsylvania and eventually was one of the first judges of nearby Philadelphia.[5]
References
1. "THE CLAYTON FAMILY: The Branch from England to America", Bill Putnam. 2009
2. Publications of the Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania. Vol. 6. Philadelphia. 1917. p. 12-13.
3. Goodley, George Walter (1987). Bethel Township Delaware County, Pennsylvania Thru Three Centuries. p. 92.
4. Lore, Charles B. (1902). The Life and Character of Edward W. Gilpin. Wilmington: The Historical Society of Delaware. p. 19. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
5. "Annals of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania", John Fanning Watson. Parry and M'Millan, 1879. p. 49

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. May 13, 2022.

———————————————

William Clayton was born about 1625 in England, and married there to Prudence Mickles. In 1677, William sailed on the ship "Kent" from London, England, to West Jersey, where he and his family settled in Burlington. A Quaker, he was one of several commissioners sent from London by the proprietors of New Jersey to purchase land from the native Indians.

Several years later, William settled at Upland, later called Chichester, Chester County, PA, now Chester, Delaware County, PA. He was a member of the provincial council under Governor Markham; served as one of the nine justices of the court of Upland County in 1681, and subsequently of Chester County, PA, and presided at the first council meeting held in Pennsylvania after the arrival of the proprietor, William Penn, in 1682. William Clayton was acting governor of Pennsylvania in 1684-85, and a member of the Governor's council during the drafting of the great charter of Pennsylvania. He and Samuel Pastorious were the first two judges of the city of Philadelphia. 

William Clayton of Chichester, PA, carpenter, died in 1689, intestate (without leaving a will). An inventory of the estate was made on Oct 8, 1689. 

William & Prudence had 8 children: Prudence, Joseph, Elizabeth, Honour, William Jr., twins Mary & Elizabeth, and Hannah.

On Ancestry from Firefly6399.

——————————————

Among the passengers of the Kent were William Clayton and a very young man named James Brown. Records of the first minutes of Burlington Monthly Meeting state that "the said friends in those upper parts have found it needful according to our practice in the place wee came from to settle Monthly Meetings for the well ordering of the Affairs of ye Church it was agreed that accordingly it should be done and accordingly it was done the 15th of ye 5th mo 1678."
The following year, the marriage confirmation of James Brown and Honour Clayton appear in the minutes of the Burlington, New Jersey Monthly Meeting: 1679, 6, 8 James Brown of Markors Hook, m Honor Clayton, Burlington, Burlington MM, New Jersey. Honour, the daughter of William Clayton and Prudence Lanckford, was born 29 January, 1662, in Sussex, England and probably died in Chester County Pennsylvania after her husband's will was written in 1715/6.
James Brown, the son of Richard Brown, an English Quaker, was born 27 March, 1656 in Puddington, Northamptonshire, England and died 1st February, 1715/6 in Nottingham Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania. He sat on the first jury under British rule on 13 September, 1681, and, later sat on a jury with his brother William on 1st July. 1684. William was later arrival to New Jersey. Although James became a resident of Marcus Hook before his marriage, he remained in contact with other Quakers of Burlington, New Jersey. In his will, James refers to himself as `Yoman.'
Biography Author: Jacqueline Frank Strickland #200 References
Bel!arts. James E. The Descent of Some of Our Quaker Ancestors, Facts, Fiction. Folklore and FakeloreHinshaw William Wade. Encyclopedia of American Quaker Genealogy. Vol.!!, pp 200.207 The Handy Book for Genealogists. Seventh Edition National Society Descendants of Early Quakers Plain Language. Vol.3, 1990 Will of James Brown, 15 January 1715/6. Township of Nottingham province of Pennsylvania, Chester County Archives and Records Service.
On Ancestry from LVandiverCA.
—————————————————
Notes for Prudence (Spouse 1)
ENGLISH IMMIGRANT ANCESTOR on the vessel “Kent.”

—————————————

Alternative dates: Birth 1631 Surrey, England and Death 1689.

———————————

William Clayton was born about 1625 in England, and married there to Prudence Mickles. In 1677, William sailed on the ship "Kent" from London, England, to West Jersey, where he and his family settled in Burlington. A Quaker, he was one of several commissioners sent from London by the proprietors of New Jersey to purchase land from the native Indians.

Several years later, William settled at Upland, later called Chichester, Chester County, PA, now Chester, Delaware County, PA. He was a member of the provincial council under Governor Markham; served as one of the nine justices of the court of Upland County in 1681, and subsequently of Chester County, PA, and presided at the first council meeting held in Pennsylvania after the arrival of the proprietor, William Penn, in 1682. William Clayton was acting governor of Pennsylvania in 1684-85, and a member of the Governor's council during the drafting of the great charter of Pennsylvania. He and Samuel Pastorious were the first two judges of the city of Philadelphia. 

William Clayton of Chichester, PA, carpenter, died in 1689, intestate (without leaving a will). An inventory of the estate was made on Oct 8, 1689. 

William & Prudence had 8 children: Prudence, Joseph, Elizabeth, Honour, William Jr., twins Mary & Elizabeth, and Hannah.

On Ancestry from Firefly6399.

——————————————
Last Modified 24 May 2023Created 10 Feb 2024 using Reunion on a Macintosh


Created 10 Feb 2024.
© Copyright 1993-2024 by John Johnson.

Created on a Macintosh computer using Reunion genealogy software.

The information on this site was gathered over three decades and is provided for the use of family and private genealogists ONLY.
No commercial use of this material is allowed. Any information or images provided by relatives remain their property.


“I am bound to them though I cannot look into their eyes or hear their voices. I honor their history. I cherish their lives.
I will tell their story. I will remember them for I am the result of the very love, struggle, sacrifice and journey of thousands.”
Unknown